Panther

" P A N T H E R " Screenplay by Melvin Van Peebles 1995 BLACKOUT The SCREEN stands BLACK, like a chalkboard... or a grave. A SOUND builds, like a RADIO surfing channels. Snippets of SONGS -- Joan Baez' "Blowin' in the Wind," James Brown's "I Feel Good." The music of a different time. FOOTAGE IMAGES hit the screen: ROSA PARKS, Peace Demonstrators stuffing FLOWERS in the barrels of National Guard rifles. Protesters in Birmingham, rallies on the White House Lawn. Mixed in with the MUSIC comes NEWS BITES -- quick catchwords of 60's turmoil -- "More troops to Vietnam," "Bus Boycott," "Sit ins," "Draft Dodgers," "Malcolm X speaking." Then a SINGLE PHOTO settles on screen -- a ROW of BLACK PANTHERS, fists raised, standing defiantly together. The IMAGE FREEZES. VOICE (over) The Black Panthers... As the PHOTO FADES, LIGHTS APPEAR. A SHAPE takes form. The BAY BRIDGE arcs over silent water, spanning two worlds. VOICE (over) People still ask me how it all started? How things went so far? And like a lot of questions about the Panthers, there are different answers. Different beginnings... Rising behind the voice, the noise of a CROWD can be heard. VOICE (over) What became the Black Panthers really started with just two guys -- Bobby Seale and Huey Newton -- saying two words: "Defend Yourselves..." Legend has it they met at some coffee house where Bobby was running down a rhyme... CUT TO: EXT.